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Riteish Deshmukh’s Raja Shivaji: A Personal and Cinematic Journey: Riteish Deshmukh will bring one of the most renowned warrior kings to the big screen in his ambitious directorial venture, Raja Shivaji. For the actor-turned-filmmaker, this is far more than a film—it is a deeply personal tribute rooted in his Maharashtrian identity.
A Legacy That Still Inspires
In an interview with Variety, Riteish reflected on the significance of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. “Coming from a Marathi family, we’ve grown up reading and hearing stories of his valor. He lived almost 350 years ago, yet people are still willing to sacrifice everything for him. There is no other king like him anywhere in the world—one who has left such an everlasting legacy.”
Thinking Beyond Marathi Cinema
Raja Shivaji is designed to be the largest-scale bilingual film in Marathi, and plans are to extend to other languages. Riteish said that although Maharashtra has more than 10 crore Marathi people, the box office hardly reflects the potential. He cited past successes such as Sairat (2016) and Lai Bhaari (2014) as well as Ved (2022) as evidence that Marathi cinema has the potential to be successful on a commercial level.
“Shivaji Maharaj is revered across India,” said the actor. “We want audiences to understand what shaped him—his childhood, his questions, his decisions about the kind of man he wanted to become. As much as it is a historical epic, it is also a story of family—of a father, a son, a husband, and a brother.”
A Humbling Experience on the Sahyadris
Riteish has described the process of filming as spiritually intense. As he stood on the Sahyadri mountain range, clad in the dress of Shivaji Maharaj, Riteish was struck with an overwhelming sense of being small.
“He died at 50, yet achieved so much,” Riteish stated. ” I stood at the edge of those peaks, dressed as this great man, and felt like a tiny dot. He owned that land. He had the vision to look out and say, “The enemy might come from there—I must fight for this land and these people.” In front of what he achieved, I am nothing.
A Collaborative Vision and a World-Class Team
Riteish claims to be an open collaborative filmmaker who accepts ideas from every direction. To realise his vision He looked for talent that was greater than him.
The legendary cinematographer Santosh Sivan was invited to join the project as a collaborator, which brought the project full circle. Sivan had expressed his interest in this project in 2015; a couple of years later, he contacted us to ask, “Are you still doing Raja Shivaji?” The reconnection was a surprise and was the final straw that sealed the collaboration. Acclaimed composers Ajay-Atul, Ajay, and Tull are also involved in composing the soundtrack for the film.
“You should always surround yourself with people who are better than you,” Riteish stated. “Their vision helps take the script to a higher level.”
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